In Memoriam: George Frederick "Fritz" Jewett Jr.

George Frederick "Fritz" Jewett Jr.

The Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution has received word of the death of George Frederick "Fritz" Jewett Jr. on May 23, 2008, of a cerebral hemorrhage. He was 81.

George Frederick “Fritz” Jewett, Jr., and his wife Lucy, residents of
San Francisco, became WHOI Associates in 1958. Fritz served as a
Member of the Corporation from 1986 to 1990, and was elected an
Honorary Member in 1991. Strong supporters of WHOI, Fritz and
Lucy hosted many outreach events on behalf of the Institution.
Fritz also participated in an Alvin dive in 1990.

Fritz was born April 10, 1927 in Spokane, WA. He graduated from
Phillips Academy in Andover, MA, and received his BA degree from
Dartmouth College and his MBA from Harvard Business School. Mr.
Jewett retired from Potlatch Corporation in 1999 after an affiliation
of more than 20 years, concluding as Vice Chairman of the Board.
Mr. Jewett was Chairman and a Trustee of the George Frederick Jewett
Foundation. Fritz became Chairman of the Board of the Asian Art
Commission in 1967 and helped to establish San Francisco’s Asian Art
Museum. He was a Trustee of the California Pacific Medical Center
(formerly known as Presbyterian Hospi¬tal) and a member of the Trustees
Council of the National Gallery in Washington, DC. He also served
as a Director of the California Academy of Sciences and Mills College,
a member of the Dartmouth Alumni Council, and a member of the advisory
board of Monterey Bay Aquarium. In 1980 he was knighted at the
Cathedral of St. John the Divine in New York City.

One of Fritz’s lifelong interests was a love of sailing. He
learned to sail as a child when he spent summers at his family’s home
on Cape Cod. As an adult, he chaired five America’s Cup
syndicates for three yacht clubs from 1973 to 2000, sharing in the
victories of two campaigns, Freedom in 1980, and Stars and Stripes in
1987. For his many contributions to sailing, he was inducted into
the America’s Cup Hall of Fame. He was a member of the Pacific
Union Club, Bohemian Club, Burlingame Country Club, and the St.
Francis, Marin, San Diego, New York, and Ida Lewis yacht clubs.

Fritz is survived by his wife Lucy; two children, Mary Elizabeth
“Betsy” Jewett and George F. Jewett, III; and four grandchildren.
He is survived by one sister, Margaret Weyerhauser (Jewett)
Greer. His late father, George F. Jewett, Sr., was a former
Trustee and Member of the Corporation, and his neice, Sara Dent, is a
WHOI Trustee and Member of the Corporation.

Originally published: May 27, 2008

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